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Derby paid an undisclosed fee to Liverpool for the defender, believed to be £2m rising to £4.5m.

Huddlestone started his career at Derby. He made his debut at 16 and played almost 100 times for the first team before signing for Tottenham Hotspur.

Tom Huddlestone rejoined the Rams (Image: Derby County Football Club)

He then moved on to Hull from where Derby signed him for a fee believed to be £2.4m.

Derby recouped more than £10m by selling Ince to Huddersfield Town (£8m rising to £11.3m) and Christie to Middlesbrough (£2.5m).

Pre-season started with an injury blow as George Thorne picked up a hamstring problem having worked so hard to return to training following a broken leg.

The Rams won their opening friendly against Kidderminster Harriers 4-0 with goals from David Nugent, Craig Bryson, Darren Bent and Chris Martin, who was back at the club after spending the previous season on loan at Fulham.